Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Flics et voleurs, 14 Jun 2007
And the award for most outrageous sexual symbolism of 1969 goes to Alain Delon, for his performance battering an eel to death on a rock after catching a glimpse of Irina Demick's body double nude sunbathing in The Sicilian Clan...
Despite the title, this 1969 flic et voyou flick is definitely NOT a mob movie: the clan are a family of Sicilian crooks in France headed by Jean Gabin who spring Alain Delon from jail for a massive jewel robbery, with Lino Ventura's dogged cop on the trail. Based on a novel by Rififi author Auguste le Breton, there's little that's original (although the heist itself is spectacularly ingenious), but it's put together with polish and style and makes for an entertaining couple of hours. Henry Verneuil's direction raises the standard, while Delon, Ventura and Irina Demick offer good value. The once-great Gabin fares less well - although it's nice to see him reunited with his Touchez Pas le Grisbi nemesis Ventura in a couple of scenes, for much of the film he's more of an immoveable monument than much of a presence, only really coming across in his final scene, which taps in nicely to the resigned fatalism of his pre-war classics.
It's not an all-time great, but it is an entertaining and atmospheric French thriller that nicely fills a couple of hours.
Fox's DVD boasts good 2.35:1 widescreen transfer of the English-language version (the film was shot in French, Italian and English-language versions rather than simply dubbed) and includes the US trailer.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
OK Film, Three Great Stars, 9 Oct 2007
The Sicilian Clan is not the greatest crime caper but it does contain three of France's greatest film stars, Jean Gabin, Alain Delon and Lino Ventura.
Gabin plays the head of a criminal Sicilian family (not in the mafia sense) based in Paris. He arranges for the escape from the Police of murderer Alain Delon, who has the plans of a jewelry exhibition which they plan to rob.
Ventura plays the cop who sets out to track Delon down. Throw in the fact that Delon is sleeping with Gabin's daughter in law and you have the makings of a classic French crime film. The Sicilian Clan does not come up to the likes of Rififi, Grisbi or Bob Le Flambour but its OK.
What makes it worth while are it's three stars who give it a touch of Gallic cool. Delon in the sixties and Gabin in the forties and fifties were the biggest male French film stars, and great actors when given the chance. Ventura never quite came up to their status but like them could act when called upon to do so. He also has what must be the most memorable face in Cinema, French or otherwise.
Give it a try.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Flics et voleurs, 20 Feb 2004
Despite the title, this 1969 flic et voyou flick is definitely NOT a mob movie: the clan are a family of Sicilian crooks in FRance headed by Jean Gabin who spring Alain Delon from jail for a massive jewel robbery, with Lino Ventura's dogged cop on the trail. Based on a novel by Rififi author Auguste le Breton, there's little that's original (although the heist itself is spectacularly ingenious), but it's put together with polish and style and makes for an entertaining couple of hours. Henry Verneuil's direction raises the standard, while Delon, Ventura and Irina Demick offer good value. The once-great Gabin fares less well - although it's nice to see him reunited with his Touchez Pas le Grisbi nemesis Ventura in a couple of scenes, for much of the film he's more of an immoveable monument than much of a presence, only really coming across in his final scene, which taps in nicely to the resigned fatalism of his pre-war classics. There's a lot wrong with the video - it's from the days when dubbed panned and scanned versions of Scope foreign films were the norm rather than the exception, while at one point on my copy the theme tune from M*A*S*H bled through on the soundtrack to attack Ennio Morricone's score (could Fox be copying over old unsold tapes?). While Henri Decae's great photography does suffer, especially in the split-screen title sequence, at least Delon dubs himself (indeed, his sequences actually appear to have been shot in English). However, until someone decides this merits a widescreen subtitled release on DVD (it's only available unsubtitled in France), this tape is worth a shot, especially at a budget price. It's not an all-time great, but it is an entertaining and atmospheric French thriller that nicely fills a couple of hours.
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